London Mayor urges Londoners to give blood to help save lives

Ansar Ahmed Ullah
Contributing Editor, Shottobani

London: The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has called on Londoners to step forward and give blood to help save and improve lives, as hundreds of new donors are needed daily to help patients in the capital.

Around 135,000 new donors are needed annually to ensure blood is available to patients across the country, with at least 40,000 new blood donors needed in London each year over the next five years to keep supplying blood for lifesaving treatments. Donors of Black heritage are urgently needed to help patients, particularly those with sickle cell – the country’s fastest growing genetic blood disorder.

Sadiq Khan worked with NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to host the first ever blood drive at City Hall’s new location at the Royal Docks today. He was joined by NHSBT Ambassadors Dr Emeka Okorocha and Dr Amos Ogunkoya and Deputy Mayor for Communities and Social Justice Dr Debbie Weekes-Bernard to give blood and encourage more people from diverse backgrounds across the capital to become donors.

While people from all communities and backgrounds give blood, fewer than five per cent of donors in the last year were from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.

More donors of Black heritage are particularly required as there has been a rise in demand for some rare blood types, such as Ro, which patients with sickle cell most often need. Black heritage donors are 10 times more likely to have the Ro subtype and last year, hospitals in London asked for 58 per cent more Ro blood than they did five years ago.

The situation is particularly critical in London as the capital has the highest number of sickle cell patients in the UK. Sickle cell disproportionately impacts people of Black African and Black Caribbean heritage. Each month, 1,300 donors of Black heritage are needed to give blood to help provide life-saving transfusions to sickle cell patients and for use in emergencies, childbirth, surgery, and cancer treatments.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said, “We urgently need more Londoners to come forward and give blood to help deliver lifesaving treatments across the capital and the country. Giving blood saves lives, providing a lifeline in an emergency and for people who need long-term treatments. I was proud to host this blood drive at City Hall as part of my work to build a better London for all and encourage more Londoners to become donors.”

Director of Donor Experience at NHS Blood and Transplant, David Rose, said, “Blood donation is amazing and it saves lives, yet right now we urgently need more donors of Black heritage to help tackle the health inequalities affecting patients from a similar ethnic background who rely on regular blood transfusions, a growing number of whom are Londoners.”